Interpretive Summary: Bell peppers and cucumbers are often grown in a double crop rotation in the southern U.S. The southern root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita, causes disease and yield losses in both crops. Currently, most fields are treated with methyl bromide before planting vegetable crops to control pests in the soil. However, methyl bromide is thought to harm the atmosphere, so it will not be produced in the U.S. beyond January 1, 2005. Thus, alternatives to methyl bromide are desperately needed to control nematodes, diseases, and weeds in vegetable crops. In our experiments, we evaluated use of a resistant pepper variety in combination with a soil fumigant (metam sodium) for managing root-knot nematodes in a pepper - cucumber rotation. We planted resistant and susceptible pepper varieties as a spring crop. After the pepper crop, we applied metam sodium through the drip irrigation system to help control root-knot nematodes before sowing the fall cucumber crop. Root galling was 47% less and there were 83% fewer root-knot nematodes in cucumber planted after the resistant pepper in metam sodium - fumigated soil than in cucumber planted after the susceptible pepper variety without soil fumigation. Cucumber yields were highest when soil had been fumigated with metam sodium.

Technical Abstract:
Bell peppers and cucumbers are often grown in a double crop rotation in the southern U.S. The southern root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita, causes disease and yield losses in both crops. Currently, most fields are treated with methyl bromide before planting vegetable crops to control pests in the soil. However, methyl bromide is thought to harm the atmosphere, so it will not be produced in the U.S. beyond January 1, 2005. Thus, alternatives to methyl bromide are desperately needed to control nematodes, diseases, and weeds in vegetable crops. In our experiments, we evaluated use of a resistant pepper variety in combination with a soil fumigant (metam sodium) for managing root-knot nematodes in a pepper - cucumber rotation. We planted resistant and susceptible pepper varieties as a spring crop. After the pepper crop, we applied metam sodium through the drip irrigation system to help control root-knot nematodes before sowing the fall cucumber crop. Root galling was 47% less and there were 83% fewer root-knot nematodes in cucumber planted after the resistant pepper in metam sodium - fumigated soil than in cucumber planted after the susceptible pepper variety without soil fumigation. Cucumber yields were highest when soil had been fumigated with metam sodium.